The Cavalier Daily
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Deflated grades boost learning

IT SEEMS, my fellow Wahoos, as if the gauntlet has been thrown. The Cavalier Daily reported Sept. 2 that the College is looking into ways to curb trends of grade inflation.

College Dean Melvyn P. Leffler explained in an interview that department heads will be asked to collect grade distributions from professors. The College will use that data to study trends of inflated grading, and the process will focus professors' attention on this important issue. The College also will add grading patterns to the list of factors it considers when professors are up for promotion. The goal is to encourage grades that are commensurate with the work students put into courses, as well as the knowledge they gain from them.

Inevitably, this will mean changes in the grades students receive. What with the grade-inflation gravy train screeching to a halt, things surely will get a lot harder for students around here. With this new order comes an academic reckoning, complete with lightning bolts and lower grades College-wide. What are we going to do?

It's very simple, really. We're going to take a deep breath and cross that line in the sand. This is it, folks, ground zero. While Leffler has issued a challenge to his faculty, he also has sounded a battle cry in our direction. Since the issue of grade inflation concerns the entire University community, no changes to the general grading policy can be instituted on a one-sided basis. Both faculty members and students have a vested interest in keeping academic standards high, which means that everyone must work harder to maintain that academic ideal. I propose, therefore, that College students support the College's efforts.

In order for this to succeed students seriously need to redefine for themselves what it means to get an education. Many attribute the spread of grade inflation to fundamental shifts in students' attitudes toward school. Paying tuition for a degree contributes to a consumer mindset that only spells doom for the interests of academic standard-bearing. After all, if you pay thousands of dollars to take classes, you're going to expect positive results - namely, a good-looking transcript and even better-looking GPA. This attitude pressures individual professors to dole out high grades, even if it's against their better judgement.

But more importantly, it takes luster from the very jewel of higher education - the professor-student relationship. By relationship, I mean an active exchange of ideas, in which both parties freely participate. As students, we shouldn't passively receive grades. We should earn them through the successful incorporation of in-class materials with independent thought. When we treat our professors as mere grade-givers, we are aggravating the problems of grade inflation.

The "how" of it can be seen all over Grounds. Students go through the motions of sitting through discussion sections and cooperative learning projects, but participate only minimally - just enough to meet the requirements of the class, and get that 'A' under their belts. Forget about attending office hours or e-mailing professors - all that stuff is optional. It's no wonder that professors have so little to work with when it comes time to distribute grades: just a banal succession of term papers and blue books. We refuse to show faculty members our willingness to meet academic challenges, and so they offer none.

The times, however, are a-changing, thanks to Leffler's initiative about fair grade distribution. Professors are under pressure, which means that doing the minimum for a course just won't cut it this year. To those students who fear faculty members will give out bad grades for the sake of making a point: Do something to make sure that doesn't happen. Instead of sitting around waiting for a professor to give you the expected 'A', go out of your way to involve yourself in the class. Participate. Comment. Query.

Make it as hard as possible for your professor to penalize you for being a consumer. When he or she sits down to calculate your grade, there should be no question that you've done everything the class requires, and then some. Changes in grading policies do n't occur in a vacuum. With both professors and students working together, what seems like an unfair crackdown on students ultimately will bolster the entire academic community.

(Kiki Petrosino's column appears Wednesdays in The Cavalier Daily.)

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